Monday, August 24

Odds and Ends

My daughter took this photo in Ecuador recently. I have no idea what kind of tree they are, and I'm going to try and find out. They're otherworldly, aren't they? I searched for trees native to Ecuador, but I found nothing that looked like these. Thanks to Geraldo, we have an answer!! Look in the comments. Thanks, Geraldo!

Last week when the women in my neighborhood went out to lunch, this fuzzy guy met us on the way out of the restaurant. I asked him to move so I could get a better photo, but he was having none of it - and I knew I better not touch him. I suspect those black spurs are lethal! I wonder what he turns into after he spins his cocoon?

I really miss my live baby foxes, so I got this one to remind me how sweet they were. Isn't he cute? I suspect he'll become good friends with all my froggies in no time!

Now that is one weird looking tree. Almost looks like it has been groomed.Love your fox. I used to collect them till word spread and soon fox replicas were my only gifts for Christmas and B-Days. Lot of dusting going on.

This tree is an Araucaria Angustifolia, known as Parana pine. It is a conifer, but not a true pine. It is common in Southern Brazil and in Argentina; I didn't know it could found as far as Ecuador.Its seeds are known as "pinhão" in Brazil, and are edible when cooked (they're similar to the Italian "pignoli" used in pesto sauce, but much bigger).